Venezuela defends controversial flights to Iran and Syria (Iran's pipeline into US)

CNN ^

[roses of sharon]

According to the State Department's latest country report on terrorism, which covers 2009, "President [Hugo] Chavez continued to strengthen Venezuela's relationship with state sponsor of terrorism Iran. Iran and Venezuela continued weekly Iran Airlines flights connecting Tehran and Damascus with Caracas."

A 2007 report went further, raising concerns about the travelers from Syria and Iran who might be onboard. It said in part, "Passengers on these flights were not subject to immigration and customs controls at Simon Bolivar International Airport" in Caracas.

It also noted that one passenger who bought a ticket on the route that year was Abdul Kadir, who was convicted this month of plotting a 2007 attack on fuel pipelines for New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport. He was arrested on a plane bound for Caracas and never made his connection for the flight to Iran.

Contacted by CNN about the flight and its passengers, former CIA director Michael Hayden said, "The concerns are not just in the abstract. We saw people traveling who made us wonder."

Peter Brookes, a former deputy assistant defense secretary now with conservative think tank the Heritage Foundation, said passengers on the flight from Iran and Syria could include "people who probably ... are intelligence agents, probably Islamic Revolutionary Guards forces, Quds force, even Hezbollah terrorists."

Brookes pointed to Venezuela's proximity to U.S. interests in the Western Hemisphere and said, "I think the greatest concern is, there might be individuals -- terrorists, operatives, soldiers -- who might attack American interests, if the Iranian nuclear drive comes to a head."

[roses of sharon]

My understanding is that this flight not only goes from Caracas to Damascus to Tehran perhaps twice a month, but it also occasionally makes stops in Lebanon as well, and the passengers on that flight are not processed through normal Venezuelan immigrations or customs. They are processed separately when they come into the country," says Peter Brookes, senior fellow for National Security Affairs at the Heritage Foundation.

The 16-hour flight typically leaves Tehran and stops at Damascus International Airport (DAM), which is Syria's busiest. In 2009, almost 4.5 million passengers used the airport.

After a 90-minute layover, the flight continues the remaining 14 hours to Venezuela's Caracas Maiquetia International Airport (CCS). Upon arrival, the plane is met by special Venezuelan forces and sequestered from other arrivals.

"It says that something secretive or clandestine is going on that they don't want the international community to know about," says Brookes, a former deputy assistant defense secretary for Asian and Pacific Affairs and CIA employee.

"The fact that there is a flight is of course of interest, but the fact that not anybody can gain access to this flight or buy a ticket for that flight is of particular curiosity and should be of concern to the United States."

In addition to speculation about who is aboard, there are significant concerns that the Boeing 747SP airplane might be transporting uranium to Tehran on the return flight.

[roses of sharon]

In June, 2010, a congresswoman wrote to Janet Napolitano about Hezbollah’s border activities. Sue Myrick, (R-N.C) wrote that:

“It is vital we know what is happening on our border, especially as crime and violence continue to rise there and as terrorist plots and threats are increasing inside the U.S.”

Myrick drew attention to “Iranian agents and members of Hezbollah” who were thought to be learning Spanish in Venezuela before posing as Mexican immigrants. She also quoted a former Mexican official who suggested that Hezbollah could be training Mexican drug cartels in how to make bombs. She stated that:

“This might lead to Israel-like car bombings of Mexican/USA border personnel or National Guard units.”

So far, no USA border personnel have been attacked with car bombs. However, on July 15, 2010, less than three weeks after the Republican congresswoman suggested this, Mexico had its first experience of a drug cartel carrying out a car bombing. This attack took place in Ciudad Juarez. Two policemen and two medics were killed. The car bomb was believed to have been triggered by a cell phone, and was thought to be revenge for the police arrest of Jesus Acosta Guerrero, leader of La Linea drug cartel.

According to a recent report by Scott Stewart of the strategic forecasting group Stratfor:

STRATFOR sources say that Hezbollah members have married Mexican women in order to stay in Mexico, and some have reportedly even adopted Spanish names. A Hezbollah operative with a Spanish name who learns to speak Spanish well can be difficult for a U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent to spot. American officials often lack the Spanish skills required to differentiate between Spanish speakers with Mexican accents and those with foreign accents…. Sources tell STRATFOR that Hezbollah and the Iranians are involved in several small Islamic centers in Mexican cities such as Torreon, Chihuahua City and Monterrey. They also have an active presence in Shiite Islamic centers in border towns on both sides of the border and use these centers to coordinate cross-border smuggling of contraband and operatives.

[nuconvert]

You can be sure it’s transporting more than people

[roses of sharon]

August 17, 2010
Government still ignoring terrorist threat from jihadis based in Mexico
Norah Petersen
The danger of Islamic terrorists entering the United States through Mexico is a dire concern in a post-9/11 world. Yet, the threat of Islamic terrorists just south of the border existed even before 9/11. A 2003 Library of Congress report entitled “ORGANIZED CRIME AND TERRORIST ACTIVITY IN MEXICO, 1999-2002” revealed :

“Statements made by high-ranking Mexican officials prior to and following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks indicate that one or more Islamic terrorist organizations has sought to establish a presence in Mexico. In May 2001, former Mexican national security adviser and current ambassador to the United Nations, Adolfo Aguilar Zinser, stated, that “Spanish and Islamic terrorist groups are using Mexico as a refuge.”

The report mentioned the possibility that Hezbollah might be one of these groups.

“Prior to September 11, Zinser’s remarks about “Islamic people” in Mexico sparked speculation among observers that the Lebanese Shi’ite terrorist organization Hizbollah may have established cells in Mexico. A Hizbollah presence in northern Mexico was considered a possibility by observers because of the sizable ethnic Lebanese and Palestinian communities in the northern Mexican city of Monterrey.”

Several months after the September 11th attacks, an official from Mexico’s National Migration Institute said that persons linked to Osama Bin Laden were in Mexico, although the National Migration Institute itself officially denied this claim.

“In January 2002, National Migration Institute (Instituto Nacional de Migracion-INM) official Felipe Urbiola Ledezma made more alarming were statements. During remarks to the press, Urbiola said, “We have in Mexico people linked to terrorism and we are constantly observing unusual immigration flows...[people connected to] ETA, Hizbollah and even some with links to Usama Bin Laden.”

Oddly enough, nearly nine years after 9/11, our government has yet to consider the threat of Islamic terrorists operating in Mexico to be serious enough to warrant any real attempt at securing the southwest border. Go figure.